Tuesday, July 22, 2008

A Mix of Terrific Books....

From Publishers Lunch Weekly:

FICTION/DEBUT:

Writer and sculptor Jane Borodale's debut novel THE BOOK OF FIRES, set in eighteenth century England, a tale of fire, fortune and redemption, in which an impoverished seventeen-year-old girl with an unwanted secret runs away from home and becomes an apprentice to a secretive, brooding London fireworks maker, to Pamela Dorman in her first acquistion for Pamela Dorman Books/Viking, in a pre-empt, by Zoe Pagnamenta at the Zoe Pagnamenta Agency, on behalf of Pat Kavanagh at United Agents (NA).UK/Commonwealth rights to Clare Smith at Harper Press, by Pat Kavanagh, in a two-book deal. Translation rights: jcraig@unitedagents.co.uk

Rachel Keener's debut, THE KILLING TREE, about forbidden love, murder, and small town secrets, to Christina Boys at Center Street, by Andrea Somberg of Harvey Klinger (world).

MYSTERY/CRIME:

Zoe Ferraris's PILGRIMAGE, a sequel to the recently published literary mystery FINDING NOUF, following a Muslim detective into the Saudi desert as he helps an American woman find her missing husband, and continues to manage the conflict between his religious beliefs and his desire for a family, to Anjali Singh at Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, by Julie Barer at Barer Literary (NA).

GENERAL/OTHER:

Booksense pick and Pen/Hemmingway finalist Michael Parker's CAN'T FIND MY WAY HOME, about a love affair with devastating consequences, set across Texas, North Carolina and Mexico, again to Kathy Pories at Algonquin, in a nice deal, by Peter Steinberg at The Steinberg Agency (world).

Longtime correspondent for the Washington Post and writer for the NYT Marilyn Berger's THIS IS A SOUL, about an American doctor in Ethiopia who has devoted his life to treating some of the world's sickest children, has adopted five of them and taken in some 20 others who might otherwise have to fend for themselves in the streets, to Henry Ferris at William Morrow, in a pre-empt, by Laura Yorke and Carol Mann at the Carol Mann Agency (NA).

BIOGRAPHY:

Professor Gerald Martin's GABRIEL GARCIA MARQUEZ: A LIFE, the first authorized English language biography of the celebrated author, drawing on privileged access to Marquez, himself, as well as interviews conducted with over three hundred people (including Fidel Castro, four presidents of Colombia, Marquez's family and friends, and writers such as Carlos Fuentes and Mario Vargas Lllosa), painting a portrait of the author in the context of the last century, and exploring the tensions in his life between celebrity and literary quality, politics and writing, and among power, solitude and love, to Sonny Mehta at Knopf, at auction, by Elizabeth Sheinkman at Curtis Brown UK (US).Canadian rights to David Davidar at Penguin Canada.

BUSINESS/INVESTING/FINANCE:

Founder of Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts Isadore Sharp's autobiography THE STORY OF FOUR SEASONS, to David Davidar at Penguin Canada and Adrian Zackheim at Portfolio (with Zackheim editing, for publication in April 2009 (also launching the Penguin Business imprint in Canada, under the direction of Andrea Magyar), by Michael Levine at Goodmans (NA).HEALTH:

Harvard Medical School professor and eminent kidney disease specialist Julian Seifter, M.D.'s AFTER THE DIAGNOSIS: Transcending Chronic Illness, offering strategies for holding on to one's identity, finding meaning, and living a full, rich, rewarding life even when mind and body are under assault from illness, to Sydny Miner at Simon & Schuster, by Paul Bresnick at Paul Bresnick Agency (NA).

HISTORY/POLITICS/CURRENT AFFAIRS:

NYT bestselling author Ron Kessler's IN THE PRESIDENT'S SECRET SERVICE, which takes readers behind the scenes of the elite corps that protects presidents, first families, and presidential candidates, again to Jed Donahue at Crown Forum, by Robert Gottlieb and Scott Miller at Trident Media Group.ILLUSTRATED/ART:

Editors of LIFE Books' illustrated biography of Barack Obama, including essays from top historians and rare photos from his childhood, his time at Harvard Law School, and the campaign trail, to Michael Sand at Little, Brown, for publication in fall 2008, by Richard Fraiman at Time Inc. Home Entertainment.MEMOIR:

Larry King's autobiography WHAT AM I DOING HERE?, including personal details such as his early radio days, the loss of his father at age nine, his seven marriages to six different women, and discovering at age 65 that he had a fully grown son he never knew about, and promising to "speak candidly about his time spent with major political and cultural figures of the 20th and 21st century" including his "uncensored feelings towards George W. Bush and George Bush, Sr., Bill Clinton, Ronald Regan, Jimmy Carter and Richard Nixon," written with Cal Fussman, to Judy Hottensen at Weinstein Books, for publication in spring 2009, by David Vigliano at Vigliano Associates, in association with Michael Viner at Phoenix Books.

POP CULTURE:

Former writer and editor for Discover magazine Alex Stone's FOOLING HOUDINI, an exploration of the strange and colorful underground world of magic, the people who practice it, and its underlying connection to science, psychology, cognition, physics, and even crime, to Tim Duggan at Harper, by Elyse Cheney at Elyse Cheney Agency.